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RE: [RC] [RC] Misquoting - heidiWhile it is true that the PERMIT goes with the ranch or can be sold to another rancher, the FEES for grazing are paid to the BLM and are figured in AUMs, or "animal unit months." While the actual AUM fee is not terribly high, when you add to it the other things that the rancher must pay in order to utilize public grazing lands (fencing costs, water maintenance costs, etc.) the price ends up being very similar to the prices charged for leasing comparable grazing lands from private land owners--except that in areas like Idaho where the vast majority of the land is federally-owned, there is little private land available for lease. (Our county is 93% federal land--and I think the state of Idaho overall is around 85% federal land.)
Idaho has feral horses in some areas, particularly in the SW portion of the state. You may well encounter them when you ride Steph Teeter's rides.
I would hardly call natural waterways "abundant" on Idaho rangelands--although there are small creeks here and there, Idaho rangelands are high desert, and many of the creeks are dry later in the summer. There are springs which can be utilized, but some of them are seasonal as well. In many areas, water must be carefully stewarded in order to be used--by cattle OR by wildlife!
Also, although you may have had liver flukes near the Snake River at Council, they are not a common problem in most of Idaho, due to the desert conditions, and having pathogens passed downstream is not much of a problem, since most places don't have water that flows to anywhere else.
Heidi
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